One Incan Light with One 3.7v Cell With One/Two Hours Runtime

I am looking for one top-notch incan to add to my stable.

My primary (and mostly only) uses will be to walk and/or hike in the woods, and to use around the house at night.

I want one stellar light for the incan experience.

I owned two bored Surefire C2 hosts, and sold them both off because they were two big; I am accustomed to the size of an L-Mini II.

Requirements

-runs off one 3.7v cell (I don't want to manage a pair of cells per run, nor do I want to worry about mixing cells)
-enough lumens to hike with on trails in light and heavy woods
-as close to two hours runtime as possible, but at least one hour to be practicable

Thoughts

I am thinking about getting a Surefire E2E HA. I believe it will be comparable in size to the L-Mini II. I am contemplating using one of these lamps:

a) HO-E1R (3.6V, 50 Lumens) at 110 minutes runtime off one 17670

b) EO-E1R (3.6V, 90 Lumens) at 70 minutes runtime off one 17670


My Questions

1) Are there any other bulbs for this host, running off a single 17670, that I am missing?

2) Are there any other hosts that can take a 17670 or 18650 that are very slim that would accomodate a range of lamps besides the Surefire E2E and would run well at 3.7v and offer 80 or so lumens with over an hour of runtime?

3) I am looking for as flat a discharge curve as possible.

I am basing my search off the advice of Outdoors Fanatic and other reputable sources. I am grateful for any and all advice in what is for me a largely unexplored territory.

Re: One Incan Light with one 3.7v Cell With One/Two Hours Runtime

I don't recommend a 3.7 volt lamp, they draw a lot of current off of the battery and aren't that bright for how much juice they sap. I'd go with an EO-E2R and a 2 x 18500 or 2 x 18650 body. You should easily be able to hit over 2hrs with that setup and it'll be 150 lumens instead of 90 faster fading lumens. I get close to 1.5hrs with two P17500's in my Vital Gear FB3 running an EO-E2R. You could try an 18650 and the EO-E1R, but I don't know if you will hit 2hrs as it draws 1300mA. You might get that with some of the newer high capacity cells though like the 2900 and 3100's.

In addition with the 9 volt lamp you can just drop in 3 primaries if you need more emergency runtime. Can't do that with a 3.7 volt lamp, but you can carry spare rechargeables I guess..

LEDAdd1ct said:

Requirements

-runs off one 3.7v cell (I don't want to manage a pair of cells per run, nor do I want to worry about mixing cells)
-enough lumens to hike with on trails in light and heavy woods
-as close to two hours runtime as possible, but at least one hour to be practicable

Click to expand...

A single protected 18650 (3100) in custom E body will run a Strion bulb for over one hour and half with over 110 lumens of output.

ampdude, thank you for the detailed reply. I decided I will not be using li-ion cells in series. I appreciate the suggestion, and understand that the lesser voltage will result in a dimmer light, but it is a sacrifice I am willing to make.

ampdude and fivemega, I will consider running either the EO-E1R with 1x18650 or Strion bulb with 1x18650 in a custom E body, but I must confess that after the many, many threads I have gone through and the many comments from others, there is something beguiling about the stock E2E body in HA that just looks "right."

Assuming I go with the stock E2E and run 17mm cells, I have two further questions:

1) With the HO-E1R or EO-E1R, will using an IMR 17650 1200mAh Rechargeable LiMn 3.7V Cell offer a flatter output than using a 17670 1600mAh LiCo cell?

2) From extensive research, it is possible to find E2E-HA bodies that will natively accept 17mm cells. However, I am not able to discern which body type of the E2E is most likely to accept 17mm cells without boring. I cannot find a definitive reference thread or set of photos which conclusively offer a comparison of styles or date ranges where it can be stated that this type will accept a 17mm cell and this type will not.

Is there a set of photos on CPF that I missed which explains this?

I found these links, but they do not offer a definite guide.

1
2
3

The best I could ascertain is that the older square bodies probably will fit, while the newer round bodies are hit and miss. A picture illustrating the difference between these two types would help me greatly, as I am unsure of what qualifies as "round" and what qualifies as "square."

According to ampdude, most bodies produced after 2004 are suspect and will either barely fit 17670 or not at all. However, I am unsure of what physical characteristics to search for.

LEDAdd1ct said:

Thoughts

I am thinking about getting a Surefire E2E HA. I believe it will be comparable in size to the L-Mini II. I am contemplating using one of these lamps:

a) HO-E1R (3.6V, 50 Lumens) at 110 minutes runtime off one 17670

b) EO-E1R (3.6V, 90 Lumens) at 70 minutes runtime off one 17670

Click to expand...

Those run times are for protected 1600mAh 17670 cells. With IMR 17670 run time will be even less. 75 minutes and 45 minutes relatively.

LEDAdd1ct said:

My Questions
2) Are there any other hosts that can take a 17670 or 18650 that are very slim that would accomodate a range of lamps besides the Surefire E2E and would run well at 3.7v and offer 80 or so lumens with over an hour of runtime?

Click to expand...

No genuine $urefre made for 18650 and as you mentioned, some will take 17670

LEDAdd1ct said:

1) With the HO-E1R or EO-E1R, will using an IMR 17650 1200mAh Rechargeable LiMn 3.7V Cell offer a flatter output than using a 17670 1600mAh LiCo cell?

Click to expand...

In theory yes but your eye can't see the difference after few minutes of use.

Thank you for the support, fivemega. I understand IMR will have less runtime, but wasn't sure if it would make for a significantly flatter output because of less sag. There is a post I read floating around somewhere that states that IMR in an incandecent light will provide a more even discharge.

I am still hunting for a side-by-side photo which clearly illustrates the difference(s) between lights produced both before and after the 2004/2005 date margin, so that I can have an elevated chance of scoring a stock E2E which fits 17670 with ease.

Wolfeyes Eagle 2 will give you just over 60 minutes on a good quality 18650. It's a little low on lumens (80) but you get a bit more runtime.

I also like FM's first suggestion.

A few points you might find helpful:

The EO-E1R will have roughtly the same lumens as the stock MN03, a smaller hotspot & slightly more throw (about 60 torch lumens). The 90 lumens is bulb lumens.

Unprotected UltraFire 17670s fit my newer round body E-series if I sand off the seam bump of the wrapper near the negative end. They didn't slide freely the whole way until I did that.

bezel

BTW, more of the wrapper could have been removed if necessary in my case.

bezel

Guys, thanks for the continued help. Here is what I have so far on my mental pros and cons list:

1) Stock E2E

With patience, I can probably find one to accomodate a 17670. I can use a Lumens Factory lamp or a Strion lamp with special adapter.
I love the look of the E2E and it is quite compact. The Strion bulbs are plentiful and cheap, which I like. A 17670 will suffer in runtime compared to the latest and greatest 18650 cells. I can find quality 17670 cells cheaply, though.

2) 18650 E Body

I can use a Lumens Factory lamp or a Strion with adapter. I get the runtime of an 18650. I absolutely do not want to load cells from the head, though.

3) Wolf Eyes Eagle 2

I've owned Wolf Eyes in the past, and I know they are bomb proof hosts. Replacement bulbs seem to be ten bucks, less than the Lumens Factory. However, like the Lumens Factory, I can only purchase Wolf Eyes xenon bulbs from dealers, while the Strion is available from scads of places for a pittance.

4) Wolf Eyes Sniper

Same as above, excellent host, and the way I would go if I went the D26 route. Replacement bulbs are more than the Eagle 2, though, and about twice as expensive as the Strion.

Questions:

1) I dislike narrow, pointy, light saber beams. In the woods, 80% of the time I like to see the ground in front of me. Lumens Factory HO-E1R, EO-E1R, Wolf Eyes Eagle 2 lamp, D26/Sniper lamp, and Strion—

a) which will give me a more floody beam with bright, useable spill?

Succinctly stated, what are the beam characteristics of the Strion in an E2E or E 18650 body, the two Lumens Factory lamps, and the Wolf Eyes Sniper and Eagle 2?

b) which will offer the flattest output curve?

2) Is there a readily available socket to place a Strion bulb in a "C" Maglite? If so, I could use an LiMn 26650.

EDIT:

This thread addresses flatness of output.

EDIT:

It took me a long while to find all these pages and dig them up, but I found their content quite useful. Here are some threads of interest for the Surefire E2E, labeled appropriately. I will probably get one to use with an incandescent.

Link